Oh, how the week flies! It hardly seems possible that it’s already time to choose another Pick of the Week, yet here I sit again with the latest upcoming arrivals list from my favorite comic shop, Boston’s Comicopia.
My pick this week is volume three of Yuu Watase’s Arata: The Legend published by Viz Media. I’ve had a rocky relationship with Watase’s work, and though I’m fond of her current shojo series, Fushigi Yugi Genbu Kaiden, what I think I’ve learned from the early volumes of Arata: The Legend is that I actually like Watase best as a shonen artist.
From my review of the series’ first two volumes:
While Watase’s shojo fantasies have always featured a lot of action, this series allows her to really shine, with fights, chases, and weapons galore. There’s a natural, easy feel to the artwork in this series, even when compared to her other current work like Fushigi Yugi Genbu Kaiden, as though by choosing to draw shonen action heroes, she’s finally really hit her stride.
Though I have yet to take a look at the series’ latest volume, there’s still time to check it out at Viz’ Shonen Sunday website before its release. So go & read, and if you like it, buy it!
Zoe Alexander says
September 8, 2010 at 5:24 pmI totally agree with this pick! Yuu Watase is my all-time favorite mangaka, and while I don’t think Arata: The Legend will manage to knock Ceres: Celestial Legend off for the title of My Favorite Watase Series, it certainly is a worthy second place. She makes an awesome shonen mangaka!
– Zoe
Melinda Beasi says
September 10, 2010 at 10:57 amI’m glad *someone* agrees! I was starting to get the idea that only I am enjoying this series. Heh. So thanks for coming by and making me feel less alone!
Jade says
September 10, 2010 at 3:25 pmI’m really enjoying Arata also, but it does seem to take a lot of criticism for both being too much like and not enough like her other series, which is inane. My only complaint is that Dark Arata is too charming, he makes me wish the series was about him instead sometimes.